Step 1: Explore the Context of the Organization
Baseline Assessment
The purpose of a baseline assessment is to establish the company's current level of environmental performance by conducting the Initial Environmental Review (IER) and a Gap Analysis to discover the performance "gaps" that need to be corrected to comply with ISO 14001 requirements. The baseline assessment also helps to estimate the cost and manpower that will be involved.
Initial Environmental Review (IER)
An Initial Environmental Review (IER) is a first step that an organization takes to understand how its activities, products, or services affect the environment.
Instead of just focusing on what happens in your building, the organization will need to:
- Look at the full life of your product or service — from sourcing materials to disposal
- Consider environmental impacts at every stage
- Encourage suppliers to support sustainability
It is a detailed check that looks at the current environmental conditions of the organization. This includes identifying any waste, emissions, or use of resources. The IER also reviews the environmental laws and regulations the organization must follow, and checks how effectively it is meeting those requirements.
According to ISO 14001, the IER must be completed before creating or improving an EMS. This ensures that the goals set by the organization are based on real data and current performance, making the EMS more effective.
Gap Analysis
Gap Analysis (GA) is a process used to compare a company's current policies, procedures, and practices with the requirements of a specific standard or goal. It helps determine how well a company’s existing environmental management system aligns with ISO 14001 requirements, and identifies areas where improvements are needed. When conducted as part of the Baseline Assessment, the Gap Analysis works alongside the Initial Environmental Review (IER).
Scope of the EMS
Once the initial baseline assessment is completed, management will decide what the scope of the EMS will be and develop the organization's environmental policy based on what is important to the organization in terms of vision and mission.
Management will decide on the scope of the EMS and develop the organization's environmental policy statement. The environmental policy will naturally be based on what is important to the organization in terms of its mission.
The scope of the EMS is commonly referred to as the "fenceline." For instance a fenceline might include the following:
- Commuting and Travel
- Corporate Office
- Field Operations
- Climate Change
Generally, the scope will be the facility's entire operation. However, for large companies or facilities, a specific production operation, production line, or support activity may have its own EMS. It's also critically important management considers aspects and impact over the entire lifetime of the EMS activities.
Implications for Determining Aspects and Impacts
Under ISO 14001, aspects and impacts were identified based on general context, but the ISO 14001:2025 updates make climate change a mandatory lens, shifting from reactive pollution prevention to holistic risk assessment. Organizations must:
- Conduct a climate relevance check: Document evidence (e.g., via risk registers or scenario analysis) showing how climate change affects or is affected by their aspects. For instance, a manufacturing firm might identify refrigerant leaks (aspect) as contributing to ozone depletion and warming (impact), now prioritized due to global climate linkages.
- Adopt a lifecycle and global view: Emphasize upstream/downstream impacts, aligning with U.N. Sustainable Development Goals and frameworks like the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). This could reveal indirect aspects, such as supplier water use exacerbating drought risks.
- Monitor and report: Regularly review climate-related changes, integrating them into the performance evaluation. Auditors will verify this through documented evidence, not just policies.
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2-2. What is the purpose for conducting an EMS baseline assessment?
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